Getting your little one to doze off is easier said than done, but once they're asleep, they sure are expressive! They twitch, flutter their eyes, and make faces and noises.
This might make you to think that they're dreaming, but at such a young age, is it possible?
A baby's dreams are particularly difficult study, especially before they start to talk, but desperate for an answer, we searched the web for some research that might just shine some light on the subject.
Research suggests that adults spend about 25% of their night's sleep within what is referred to as REM (rapid eye movement) sleep. This is the stage that's identified as producing the most dreams.
Newborns impressively spend up to 50% of their sleep time within this REM stage, with premature babies spending up to 80%. There is even research to suggest that little one's experience REM sleep in the womb where they were surrounded by warmth and lulled by your voice. This has led to some researchers concluding that it must be possible for your tiny tots to have big dreams.
Contradictory research by neuroscientists states that a baby's REM sleep serves a completely different purpose for newborns and infants. During the first weeks and months, it helps their brains to develop pathways, connections, and eventually, learn languages. Some think that in order for dreams to occur, little ones need to be able to imagine things to experience dreaming the way we know it.
Either way, babies' brains certainly are kept busy, even when they're snoozing!
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What is my baby dreaming of?
If babies do dream, with such limited language skills and sense of self, what are they dreaming of? They're certainly not able to muster up the magical holiday scenes which us adults may regularly dream of.
Unfortunately, it's not until a baby starts to talk that we can fully understand what really happens when they sleep. We need them to put into words the world of their dreams.
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